Until I Die, Die for Her & If I Should Die (Revenants 2. 2.5 & 3) - Amy Plum [Review]

This review contains spoilers for those who haven't read the books.

Until I die, Die for her and If I should die (Revenants #2, #2.5 and #3) by Amy Plum

Until I Die (Revenants #2) ★★★★☆ Kate and Vincent have overcome the odds and at last they are together in Paris, the city of lights and love. As their romance deepens there’s one question they can’t ignore: How are they supposed to be together if Vincent can’t resist sacrificing himself to save others? Although Vincent promises that he’ll do whatever it takes to lead a normal life with Kate, will that mean letting innocent people die? When a new and surprising enemy reveals itself, Kate realizes that even more may be at stake—and that Vincent’s immortality is in jeopardy. In Die for Me, Amy Plum created a captivating paranormal mythology with immortal revenants and a lush Paris setting. Until I Die is poised to thrill readers with more heart-pounding suspense, spellbinding romance, and a cliff-hanger ending that will leave them desperate for the third and final novel in the series.

Die for Her (Revenants #2.5) ★★★☆☆ Set in the romantic and death-defying world of the international bestselling Die for Me trilogy, this digital original novella follows Jules, a brooding, immortal French artist who has fallen in love with his best friend’s girlfriend. Jules Marchenoir is a revenant-an undead being whose fate forces him to sacrifice himself over and over again to save human lives. He’s spent the better part of the last century flirting his way through Paris, but when he met Kate Mercier, the heroine from Amy Plum’s Die for Me trilogy, he knew his afterlife had changed forever and he had found the love of his life. Until Kate fell for his best friend, Vincent. Now Jules is faced with an impossible decision: choosing between his loyal friend and a love truly worth dying for.

If I Should Die (Revenants #3) ★★★★☆ I will not lose another person I love. I will not let history repeat itself. Vincent waited lifetimes to find me, but in an instant our future together was shattered. He was betrayed by someone we both called a friend, and I lost him. Now our enemy is determined to rule over France’s immortals, and willing to wage a war to get what they want. It shouldn’t be possible, none of it should be, but this is my reality. I know Vincent is somewhere out there, I know he’s not completely gone, and I will do anything to save him. After what we’ve already fought to achieve, a life without Vincent is unimaginable. He once swore to avoid dying—to go against his nature and forsake sacrificing himself for others—so that we could be together. How can I not risk everything to bring my love back to me?

Review:

Because I read these 3 books right after each other, I decided to do a combined review. So if you haven't finished all of these books or book 2 at least, there are spoilers in it for you.

I loved Die for Me, book 1 in this series (my review). The romance between Kate and Vincent is one of my all time favourites and the setting in Paris is so awesome! 

Let's start with the novella. I was a bit disappointed by Die for Her. I really liked Jules in the first 2 books and when I read in the blurb of the novella he was actually in love with Kate many events in the books clicked in place. I was expecting an epic one-sided romance, but unfortunately this novella was more of a quick recap of the first 2 books. It was nice to see how Vincent fell in love with Kate, but I did not feel Jules' love for Kate. The narrative sounded impersonal and I just couldn't connect with him. 

As for the 2 others books, I loved them! After I finished Until I Die I just had to read If I Should Die, I couldn't wait to find out how it all ended.

In Until I Die Vincent and Kate are both trying to find ways to stop Vincent from dying to save others. He promised this in the last book, but it hurts him too much. Vincent was pretty secretive in this book, I wasn't really a fan of that. The end is just horrifying, sad and a huge cliffhanger. This book was more of a fast-paced adventure story than a romance story, like book 1 was, a good change to me.

If I Should Die began where book 2 left off. Vincent's body was destroyed and only his ghost remained. A big part of the book is about Kate finding a way to get Vincent's body back. I've read some reviews that found this part boring, but I actually found it very exciting and it was nice to see Kate on her own without Vincent for a change. The last part of the book was pretty epic. The big change in Kate was unfortunately very predictable, but that didn't make the final battle between good and evil less awesome. Overall it was a satisfying end to a great series. It wasn't an open ending and most to all questions have been answered, I like that kind of ending best. The only thing I did not really like about the book was the solution to the Jules situation. It felt like the one with Gale in the Hunger Games, just a bit of an easy solution.

Overall

These 2 books introduce some awesome new characters. First of all we have Violette and Arthur, two ancient revenants, who aren't at all who they seem. We also get to know the Berlin revenant clan and a sad numa who wants to be a bardia (good revenant).

The already known characters get a lot of development as well. We learn a lot about Jean-Baptiste, Jules, Charles etcetera, about their history, relationships and character. I said in the review of book 1 that I wanted more backstory for the secondary characters, that request has been met.

Kate already was a strong character, but she really grows in these books, especially when she is away from Vincent. She is protective of her friends and family and stands her ground between all the paranormal stuff around her. I overall found her very likable.

Vincent is still one of my favourite YA boys.  He's very romantic and sweet. Even though he's technically a zombie, he is the perfect gentleman and boyfriend. I was a bit irritated with him in book 2 because of his secretive attitude, but after he explained everything I went back to loving him.

I liked how Kate's family changed throughout these 2 last books. In the first books they were unknowing bystanders, they did not really have a role. Georgia became a more grown up and stronger woman, I loved her relationship with Kate. Kate's grandparents also get involved with the revenants. I liked how even though they did not accept the revenants at first, they did support Kate through all of the Vincent stuff.

And of course: the romance between Kate and Vincent. I'm not usually a fan of the romances in YA books, but I loved this one. They are just so genuinely sweet together. Their relationship had a lot of problems, but it still felt realistic and not too dramatic.

The revenant mythology gets more intriguing too. We get to know all about the Champion, a new sort of healers and the numa. The writer has done an amazing job of creating a whole world around the revenants and it's all pretty realistic (as far as paranormal stuff can be realistic) and very original.

And I just have to mention the amazing setting in Paris. I've been to Paris, but the Paris of Kate is so different. She knows all the little cafes and museums that tourists don't. All locations are perfectly described and you really feel that romantic ambiance of Paris.

Conclusion

This whole series is just one big adventure, fast-paced and captivating, with an amazing romance. And look at those covers, aren't they gorgeous? The last 2 books in the trilogy are as good as book 1, if not better. I would recommend these books to everyone!

Overall stars: 4 out of 5